Everyone with a phone needs to pick which carrier and options they want to go with, but not everyone’s needs are the same, including our older friends and family. There’s plenty to consider when choosing the best phone plan for older adults.
A good place to start is our best phone plans page, which breaks down the best phone plans from big US carriers, smaller operators and other providers. While some plans might look the same, a deeper comparison will reveal different perks and conditions that may appeal to you. All standard 5G plans offer virtually the same speeds as others, although speed and coverage can vary between carriers and by location. The plans themselves differ in their features; some offer more data per month and others offer mobile hotspot data, as well as bundled extras like subscriptions to streaming services.
Carriers also offer plans that provide discounts to people age 55 years old and older. These options can even be combined with other deals and can be helpful for those on fixed incomes. Such plans typically have some or all of the same features as other plans. Below, we’ve pointed out how these plans differ from their standard counterparts. For the most part, subscribers shouldn’t expect much difference in service, but some of these plans may be missing fun perks like bundled streaming services.
What is the best phone plan for older adults?
T-Mobile’s Essentials 55 Plus plan is a discounted version of the carrier’s Essentials plan suited for customers over 55 years old and is notably more affordable — a quality we’re prioritizing for readers on limited budgets. Despite the value, Essentials 55 Plus still has 5G connectivity and 50GB of data, which is a generous allotment for a no-frills service without the extra bells and whistles of pricier plans.
Best senior phone plans of 2024
For one or two people who just want to stay connected at reasonable speeds but don’t need a lot of extra features (or don’t want to pay too much), T-Mobile offers a significantly cheaper plan for older adults than competitors with Essentials 55 Plus. This plan includes 5G access and is $40 per month for one line or $55 per month total for two lines when signed up for autopay. It’s the best value for one or two people, though they won’t be able to expand to three or four lines.
The tradeoff is in the fine print, with Essentials 55 Plus customers getting lower speeds when they use over 50GB of data in a month or when T-Mobile’s network is congested from extensive customer activity, suggesting these customers are less prioritized than others. Video quality also “typically” streams at 480p, and tethering maxes out at 3G speeds (or 2G speeds in Mexico and Canada).
T-Mobile has also added a slightly pricier version of this plan called Essentials Choice 55. For an additional $5 per month ($45 for one line, $60 for two), the plan gives users access to T-Mobile’s Scam Shield, an app service that can auto-block supposed scam calls and let you change your number once a year if the calls get overwhelming. Essentials Choice 55 users also aren’t subject to the restriction of getting lower speeds when using 50GB or more of data a month.
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